CallPod Fueltank Duo

By Nancy Gravley

Apr 20th, 2010 2:50 PM EDT

The Fueltank Duo charger is a heavy duty charging device that will charge up to 3,000 different mobile devices across all major brands. It has two output ports so it can charge two devices at once. It contains a rechargeable lithium ion battery that has 7 times the capacity of most mobile devices. Each cable connected to the Duo uses a common interface to the main unit with a device specific connector on the other end. Therefore you can easily recharge an iPhone and, say, a Sprint phone at the same time if you have the appropriate device adapters.

Fueltank Duo

The unit comes with an AC power adapter and should be completely charged before first use. There is a green light below the AC power connector on the unit that will go out when the unit is fully charged. There is also a button on the end across from the power adapter connection that can be pushed to determine the battery charge. There is a car charger available as an additional purchase. The body of the Duo measures 4.9” x 3.4” x .72” and it weighs 7.3 ounces.

It is delivered with the base unit, an AC wall adapter, 3 device adapters (Mini-USB, Micro-USB, and iPhone/iPod direct connect), a carrying pouch, and a voucher certificate for an additional free adapter of your choice from the company’s Web site. It is very easy to obtain this free adapter or any others that you wish to purchase ($9.95 each). Once on the Web site, you enter the mobile device for which you need an adapter, say a specific digital camera, and you will be told which adapter you need. It’s pretty easy.

Fueltank Device Adaptors

It is important to note that the Fueltank Duo is not meant to be used to charge laptops, notebooks, or personal computers.

Using the Product

For testing purposes I charged the Fueltank Duo until it registered a full charge. Then I let both my 16 GB iPhone 3Gs and 8 GB 3rd generation iPod Nano run down to zero battery power and plugged them both into the Duo at the same time to be recharged. My iPhone is fairly new and usually recharges with ease. My Nano, on the other hand, was purchased in 2007 and the battery is starting to fail. I use it constantly and it takes longer and longer to charge it.

It took exactly one hour for the iPhone to charge back up to 100% and one hour and 41 minutes for the Nano to do the same. Your mileage will obviously vary, but those recharge times were similar to what I get when I charge through a my Mac’s USB port.

There are six colored lights on the Fueltank Duo that give you an indication of the power level remaining in the unit. At the end of this exercise the Duo lights indicated that it still had two-thirds of it’s power left.

The Bottom Line

The Fueltank Duo is fully capable of recharging two mobile devices at once. It can be shared by parties who use different brands of mobile devices as long as you have the appropriate device specific connectors. Once charged to capacity it can recharge two devices and still retain power to recharge additional devices or sit on standby to recharge the same devices again as needed. Obviously, if you don’t let your devices reach zero battery charge it will work much longer. At $69.95 it fits in the range of other battery chargers, and for some consumers, it provides a unique service in it’s ability to service many unique mobile devices with the appropriate device attachments. I think it is a clever product that many will find useful.

Mobile device charger that will charge up to 3,000 different mobile devices, including all Apple products except Shuffle, with the appropriate device specific connectors. Allows parties to charge completely different brands of products utilizing one charging device.